TECHNICAL

INTERPERSONAL

Anger Management

Character

Communication

Conflict Resolution

Leadership

Positive Risk Taking

Self Awareness

Self Confidence

Service

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Course Stories

“The program was comprehensive in its problem solving approach. If only one person “changes” that isn't enough to attempt to support and understand the kid. Parent involvement was key! We also liked that the course was HARD.” – Sue, Parent of Intercept Alumnus

What did you learn about yourself (or about life) as a result of your course? “That I am capable of much more than I know and should trust myself. It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done and it changed my outlook and tolerance of difficult situations” – Max, Parent of Intercept Alumnus

“Thank you in all you do to provide a safe, thoughtful, fun, challenging, caring and bold experience for the students and families! My daughter completed a 50-day Intercept program and has had a major reset of her self-confidence, goals and attitude. She is a joy to be around again . . . and after only three days home says she misses trail life and after four days home left to go camping - it's spectacular. Thank you all!” – Parent of Intercept Alumnus

This 50-day wilderness canoeing and backpacking course is ideal for young adults struggling to build the skills necessary to live independently.

Designed specifically to help families rebuild strong, healthy relationships, Outward Bound Intercept expeditions are designed for young adults struggling with low self-image, engaging in potentially risky behaviors, not living up to their potential and/or demonstrating poor decision-making skills. Students begin the journey with a 3-week canoe expedition that brings them to a week-long transition phase in which they touch base with their families via an Instructor-facilitated phone conference. Students then help plan and prepare for a 3-week backpacking expedition which ends with a second transition phase before culminating in a family conference. Within the structure of a wilderness expedition, students experience the thrills of adventure, the satisfaction of a hard day’s work and the comradery of a supportive team in a classroom unlike any other. During the course, Instructors facilitate activities that build teamwork, communication and conflict resolution skills; helping students set goals and make better decisions and encouraging each student to find the leader within themselves. Each transition phase includes a two-day community service project and the course culminates in a three-day intensive family conference and workshop which helps the entire family transfer the experience into a model for everyday life. Families walk away with new problem-solving tools, a new outlook, fresh optimism and a plan for success.

UPCOMING COURSES

Call For Application

This course may be full or preparing to leave in the next week. Please call us at 866-467-7651 to discuss your options.

Intercept Courses

Outward Bound Intercept expeditions are specifically designed for struggling teens and their families. These highly structured courses remove young people from daily pressures and influences and present them instead with natural challenges, guided risks and a supportive environment. More than just resolving destructive behaviors, these courses develop positive decision-making skills, strengthen their ability to build healthy and lasting relationships, and cultivate a positive self-image. Compassionate Instructors help students and parents find a healthy sense of boundaries so families interact more effectively with one another and the world around them.

Build skills, form connections: Learn and practice wilderness skills while working on interpersonal and group dynamics. Faced with the natural challenges of wilderness travel, students confront obstacles that require real-time, cooperative decision-making, respect and focused attention to detail – all of which are vital characteristics for life beyond the expedition.

Value strengths and strengthen values: Students are carefully mentored through the process of self-discovery as they are encouraged to take calculated risks and make choices with natural consequences. Developing different approaches to daily trials, seeking increasingly positive outcomes, students learn adaptability and experience the relationship between choices and consequences in the real world.

Demonstrate mastery: As the crew progresses, students are allowed to take on more leadership and decision-making responsibilities and all the joys and challenges that come with taking charge. Working both together and independently to achieve goals, students learn new skills to solve problems and succeed.

Bridge the gap: Students prepare to reunite with families and transfer Outward Bound successes to lives back home. This process involves two days of volunteer work and culminates with a facilitated conversation between students and their families.

What you’ll learn: Students come home with new communication strategies, improved conflict resolution skills and a keen awareness of themselves and others.

With the support of Outward Bound’s Intercept program, and the dedicated involvement of both students and their families, relationships start fresh, perceived limitations are overcome, new opportunities emerge and new futures are created.

Canoeing

Spring semester students begin their travel by “Ice Canoeing”. They learn a variety of skills for traversing a landscape that is literally melting away below their feet. A truly unique paddling opportunity, students witness and interact with the changing seasons as the northern winter melts into spring. The group navigates the Boundary Waters by pulling and pushing their boats like sleds over thick sheets of ice stretching across the wilderness in all directions. As temperatures warm and the ice melts, students paddle narrow channels between shattered ice sheets, eventually paddling on open water.

Summer and fall semester students begin their expedition on open lakes. Participants complete an extended canoe expedition that is entirely self-supported. This means that the group brings all of the food and gear that they need in order to live in the backcountry for three weeks. Expert Instructors teach the art of paddling a canoe in a variety of conditions, as well as map and compass reading, route finding and Leave No Trace wilderness ethics. Groups navigate a variety of waterways such as lakes, rivers and marshland, enjoying the pristine air, water and forests of the untouched wilderness. Working as a team, students carry packs and canoes over portage trails that bridge the land between bodies of water or to get safely around challenging rapids. Traveling by canoe allows groups to go far past where motorboats operate. Once there, it is possible to quietly observe bald eagles, moose and peaceful sunsets on mirror-calm lakes.

Photo courtesy
of Erin McCleary

Photo courtesy
of Darin Martin

Photo courtesy
of Lisa Pugh

Rock Climbing

On scenic granite cliffs near the Boundary Waters wilderness, semester students enjoy one day of rock climbing and rappelling in the middle of their expedition. A second climbing day happens at the end of the expedition at Shovel Point, a stunning cliff face on the shore of Lake Superior, the largest freshwater lake in the world. These 50 foot to 100 foot cliffs offer a variety of beginner and intermediate climbs that provide an ideal introduction to rock climbing. Regardless of a student’s rock climbing and rappelling background, everyone is sure to find challenge and success.

All Outward Bound rock climbing and rappelling experiences are carefully supervised and employ safety systems aligned with national standards. During climbing days, students learn about rock climbing equipment, safety and etiquette, belaying techniques and climbing rescue techniques. Encouraged and supported by their group, students push their perceived limits and expand their comfort zones in a safe, fun and non-competitive environment.

Photo courtesy
of Timb Mannuzza

Photo courtesy
of Mike Darkangelo

Photo courtesy
of Nora Dubois

Backpacking

The crew works together to carry everything they need in large backpacks while hiking from campsite to campsite through Minnesota’s boreal forest. Students hike 5 to 10 miles each day depending on terrain. Groups tend to camp near pristine rivers and lakes each evening to have access to water. Students learn how to filter and purify their water for drinking and cooking, prepare meals over a fire or stove, set up shelters and navigate with a map and compass.

Photo courtesy
of Larry Mishkar

Whitewater Canoeing and Kayaking

One day of whitewater canoeing and a half-day of whitewater kayaking add to the excitement and breadth of the expedition experience. Students learn how to “read” water and trust themselves to make split-second decisions in order to determine the best routes through the rushing waves. Students increase their skill and knowledge of whitewater paddling, progressing from maneuvering in small currents to more challenging rapids (up to Class III). Emphasis is placed on boat control, safety and enjoying the thrill of whitewater paddling.

Photo courtesy
of Theo Theobald

Photo courtesy
of Kristin Adam

Photo courtesy
of Wings Mankedick

High Ropes Course

Looking out over the top of boreal forest and the Kawishiwi River, the High Ropes Course is an incredible adventure-obstacle course set 30 feet in the air. During this half-day experience at the end of their expedition, students swing from Tarzan ropes, walk on tightrope wires and climb a cargo net, among other things, before connecting to the zip line for an exhilarating ride back to solid ground.

Family Seminar

By the end of the course, students have made great strides having learned how to balance freedom and responsibility, how to be part of a team and how to make positive choices. They feel a sense of pride in themselves and their accomplishments and have a fresh perspective and outlook on their lives, but now it’s back to reality. How do teens and families translate the incredible Intercept experience into lasting positive change? Parents or guardians are a critical link in the success of the Intercept experience. Throughout the course, parents and guardians have the opportunity to think through their relationship with their teen by using a comprehensive workbook. Then, during an intensive three-day seminar, Instructors help translate the student experience to parents and guardians, giving families an opportunity to practice tools and strategies used on the expedition, creating a solid foundation of understanding and support for the path ahead.

The next step is the family conference and debrief. Families meet one-on-one with at least one of the expedition Instructors to learn how their young adult fared on the course. They hear a detailed account of what the course was like, the struggles and success of the group and how their young adult handled the challenges. With the Instructor, families prepare for the next day’s meeting where they make a plan for the future. Together with an Instructor acting as a facilitator, families come up with a new agreement to guide life at home. The goal for the family is to re-establish healthy roles and connections, restore any past harm, rebuild trust and create clear expectations for the future. The goal for the student is to have a voice in the direction their life takes and to clearly understand and commit to their responsibilities in order to earn trust and more freedom at home.

Service

Service is a cornerstone of every Outward Bound experience. From the seemingly small, daily acts of service to the environment and the expedition team to the post-expedition service-learning projects, students have ample opportunities to experience the value of giving back to the larger community. On the expedition, students are encouraged to practice environmental stewardship in the form of Leave No Trace ethics - leaving campsites and trails in better condition than they found them. Students also practice regular acts of service for their team including preparing and serving meals, helping others put on or take off packs, or setting up shelters for the entire team. After the expedition, students participate in two days of organized service to the community. These projects are designed to offer as much interaction with local communities as possible, as a way of exchanging cultural awareness and fostering a sense of connection to the larger world. The specific type of service project depends on local needs and opportunities but often include serving at a local food shelf, CSA farm, or Habitat for Humanity

Solo

The Solo experience provides an important break from the rigors of the expedition and gives students the opportunity to reflect on their Outward Bound experience. Many students use this reflection time to make decisions about their future, journal and enjoy the beauty of their surroundings unencumbered by the constant external stimulation of modern life. The duration of Solo depends on the course length and type, as well as the competency and preparedness of the student group. With all the food, skills and supplies they need, participants are given a secluded spot to reflect alone, and are monitored by staff throughout the experience to maintain safety. Students find that Solo provokes profound and powerful learning in a short period of time and often becomes one of the most memorable parts of their Outward Bound experience.

Outcomes

Courses are offered in a variety of locations and for different lengths to provide a range of programming from which participants can choose the optimal experience for them. Longer courses allow for a full immersion into the Outward Bound experience, more time to practice wilderness travel, and the opportunity to experience both success and failure to promote personal growth. The Intercept course offers the opportunity to be fully removed from the temptations and triggers of day-to-day life and start fresh with new habits and new life lessons. Students can expect to get comfortable living and working together in the wilderness while creating a solid foundation of communication, problem solving and decision making skills that they can continue to build on after course. With the added support of parent or guardian involvement, students are able to take lessons they’ve learned on this course back to their home lives and implement the changes they want to see.

Course Area

Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, Minnesota Established in 1964, the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) is a labyrinth of lakes and rocks that has been specifically protected as a true American wilderness. No roads, power lines or motorized craft may enter its borders. Therefore, the Boundary Waters has changed little since its unveiling when the glaciers melted 10,000 years ago. Over 1 million acres in size, the BWCAW extends nearly 150 miles along the Canadian border. With over 1,200 miles of canoe routes, nearly 2,200 designated campsites and more than 1,000 lakes and streams, the BWCAW is an amazing place to experience the wilderness. The Boundary Waters contains portage-linked lakes and streams, interspersed with islands, forests and ancient granite crags, offering outstanding opportunities for world-class paddling, solitude, remoteness, teamwork, adventure and challenge. It is also home to a healthy diversity of plant and animal life including massive white pine and cedar groves, black bear, timber wolves, bald eagles and river otter. The Boundary Waters has no piped water, prepared shelters or signs to point the way. Within these borders you can canoe, portage and camp in the spirit of the French-Canadian Voyageurs of 200 years ago.

Border Route Hiking Trail, Minnesota The Border Route Trail is a 65-mile long hiking trail that crosses the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) in the far northeast corner of Minnesota. It was planned and built in the early 1970s by the Minnesota Rovers Outing Club, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and the US Forest Service. It is the first long-distance, wilderness-backpacking trail in Minnesota that was planned and constructed by volunteers. The Border Route Trail is a rugged wilderness area that follows the international border between Minnesota and Canada. The trail travels up ridgelines and over cliffs that provide impressive views of the BWCAW in Minnesota and Quetico Provincial Park in Canada. Even though it is a maintained trail, downed trees and patches of thick brush are common obstacles on the trail. The Border Route Hiking trail provides unparalleled solitude and beauty culminating at the shore of the largest freshwater lake in the world, Lake Superior.

SAMPLE ITINERARY

DAY 1

Course start

DAY 2-8

Training phase of the canoe expedition (introductory lessons in canoeing, portaging, camp craft, cooking over a fire and navigation)

DAY 9

Layover day at Basswood Falls

DAY 10-14

Main phase of the canoe expedition and rock climbing day

DAY 15-17

Solo

DAY 18-21

Final phase of the canoe expedition

DAY 22-25

Base camp activities: service project, advanced white water kayaking, high ropes course, rock climbing and exploration of the “next-steps” in life. Family phone conferences.

DAY 26-28

Backpacking expedition preparation and planning

DAY 29-38

Backpacking expedition

DAY 39-40

Second solo

DAY 41-44

Final phase of the backpacking expedition

DAY 45

Rock climbing on the cliffs of Lake Superior

DAY 46

Personal challenge event

DAY 47-48

Community service project. Parents/Guardians arrive on Day 48 to begin the Family Seminar.

Getting Started

If you are ready to enroll on a course click the enroll button next to the course you wish to select or you can enroll over the phone by speaking with one of our Admissions Advisors (toll-free) at 866-467-7651.

To secure your spot on a course you must submit an enrollment form and $500 deposit that is applied toward the total cost of the course and includes a $150 non-refundable enrollment processing fee.